Principles and pragmatism
Are we idealists or pragmatists? Do we have principles we hold dear, and a vision for the future we want to create? Or are we fumbling along, tinkering, finding what works, and forever allowing contact with reality to rearrange our mental furniture, make a mess on our conceptual floor, and occasionally punch so many holes in the walls that need to
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Figuring it out, again and again
Walking the tightrope of ideals and reality
Sari Azout
Sep 14
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One thing I’ve come to appreciate is that having a vision is not the same as executing it. There is no shortage of ambitious ideas. Time and time again, it is when the rubber of ambition meets the road... See more
Figuring it out, again and again
Walking the tightrope of ideals and reality
Sari Azout
Sep 14
READ IN APP
One thing I’ve come to appreciate is that having a vision is not the same as executing it. There is no shortage of ambitious ideas. Time and time again, it is when the rubber of ambition meets the road... See more
Figuring it out, again and again
If you have ideals but you don't take responsibility for making a change in the world, you are working on your self-image, not a product for other people. If all you have is pragmatism, then you have speed but not a direction and the purpose of your work will get set by default to, at best, the same conventional things that everyone else is chasing
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Putting the idealism and pragmatism together is forever uncomfortable. Frequently the direction set by ideals means not taking the clearest practical path. More subtly, often as you go to put principles into practice, you realize that the ideal is not quite as simple as you thought when you started.
Sari Azout • Figuring it out, again and again
Put through that process, reality usually hits like a truck. Many concepts that sound good on paper are infeasible to implement, or simply don’t produce the expected results. It’s frustrating when that happens, of course, but the pace of experimentation and learning at a startup is unparalleled. I think this is an especially important form of rigor... See more
Jasmine Sun • exit interview
Many concepts that sound good on paper are infeasible to implement, or simply don’t produce the expected results. It’s frustrating when that happens, of course, but the pace of experimentation and learning at a startup is unparalleled. I think this is an especially important form of rigor for theorycels like me. Building product forces a different ... See more
Jasmine Sun • exit interview
sari and added
at an institution, you can’t just do what is best, you also have to build trust and coordinate with others so you are on the same page. This, however, doesn’t mean that you should abdicate your judgment and get in line.
I like the approach Sholto Douglas expressed in his interview with Dwarkesh Patel:
I like the approach Sholto Douglas expressed in his interview with Dwarkesh Patel:
If I’m trying to write some code and something is... See more
Henrik Karlsson • 6 lessons I learned working at an art gallery
Andrei Stoica and added